Bad Luck Omens
by filkcatwearingabell
Summary: Seeing a black cat was meant to be bad luck. However, seeing a white cat at night was also meant to bring bad luck. In Ladybug's experience though, the latter was far more heartbreakingly devastating. Akuma!Chat Noir/Chat Blanc
1. Chapter 1

"Who are you?" Her voice was stern and cold, her narrowed eyes only emphasising her hostility towards the newcomer on the roof.

The figure opposite smirked, the tip of a pointed fang slipping passed his lower lip and glinting in the moonlight. His green eyes glittered with something akin to mirth, but there was something darker lurking there too. Ladybug's stomach twisted painfully. She had to clench her hand into a fist to distract herself from a sudden desire to vomit.

The boy took a step forward and the silver bell under his chin tinkled softly. The end of his white belt that acted like a tail flicked steadily, a small crack audible with each movement and oh so obvious in the dark Parisian night. If he was a real cat, Ladybug had the feeling he would be quietly fuming.

The boy reached a long arm towards her, his white clawed glove catching her under the chin. He tilted her head up but held it at an angle that was uncomfortable. His white leather suit disappeared from her view until all she could see was his face; the snow white eye mask and unnaturally green eyes.

"Oh, come now. Surely that's obvious, _my Lady_."

Ladybug felt tears well up in the corner of her eyes. His 'my Lady' had the same purr like lilt to it.

Now the boy's eyes narrowed. He cocked his head to one side and his blond hair flopped over itself, making his normally windswept hair simply messy. He frowned and Ladybug felt the tip of one of his clawed fingers dig lightly into her skin.

"You never shed tears for me when I was Chat Noir, why bother now when I'm the improved Chat Blanc?"

His new name made her heart pang. How was any of it an improvement on her partner?

"Why?" Her voice was barely above a whisper.

Chat Blanc's hand dropped from her chin and he examined the white ring on his finger.

"Do you know how hard it is to listen to the whole of Paris compare you to your vastly superior partner? Oh no, you wouldn't, because that's what people are doing to _me_ in regards to _you_!"

The genuine anger in his voice wasn't something she had ever heard from her partner before. She supposed she shouldn't be surprised – akumas fed off of negative energy so for this to have happened he must have been full of negativity. But they had seen each other just yesterday. Surely she wasn't so oblivious to miss how bad he was feeling...

"Chat," She tried, "No one says-"

" _What do you know!_ " He snapped, "Everyday I hear it: 'Don't you think Ladybug could do so much better than Chat Noir?' or 'If Chat Noir was as good as Ladybug then they'd defeat the villains faster'. I'm sick of it! Even you do it with your snide jabs about needing to protect me!"

His voice rose with every word until he was shouting, spittle flying from his mouth in the process. The mirth had left his eyes completely and it was the first time Ladybug had honestly been scared by an opponent. She took a few steps back across the roof but, whether he was doing it consciously or not, Chat stepped forward an equal number of steps.

"I can't even escape comparisons when I'm not Chat!" He cried, hand grabbing his staff and brandishing it in front of him, "All my father does is compare me to what he was doing when he was my age, pushing me harder and harder to achieve something he deems acceptable. I'm sick of it!" He snarled and his sharpened teeth were visible once again.

Glancing behind her, Ladybug tried to determine if she could run away. Suddenly there was a blur of silver in front of her eyes and Chat's staff slammed into the ground with a metallic clang. It was tilted towards her, blocking her exit.

With a gulp, she turned back to her partner who seemed to breathing heavily.

They stood in silence for several moments. Chat Blanc seemed to be focusing on steadying his breathing, but his bright eyes never left her. She, in turn, seemed to shrink under his gaze. No longer was she the brave Ladybug who would take on those terrorising Paris without batting an eye. No, now she was simple Marinette Cheng in a red and black suit she didn't deserve; weak little Marinette Cheng who couldn't help one of her best friends yet again.

"Just once I wanted to be the hero in white. The hero everyone marvels over and wants to be like." His voice was cold, broken even. Did he really think so little of himself?

"Please," Her voice cracked and she winced, "This isn't you – let me save you."

There was a bark of laughter and she flinched involuntarily. "You'd love that; I'm sure, my Lady. Proving yet again what a useless 'Kitty' I am."

Chat paused suddenly, apparently considering something.

"I don't need saving, Ladybug, I'm better like this. Like this I'll make everyone happy. But since it's you, I'll give you a hint," He held up his right hand and pointed at the ring that enabled him to transform, "The akuma you're after is in here. I'm sure it's probably traumatised Plagg by now."

Ladybug heard a small, telepathic cry from the kwami in her earring.

He grinned as if something about their situation was funny. "Of course, can you guarantee that my Miraculous will mend with your 'mysterious cleansing light'? And regardless of if it does, are you prepared to see what kind of disappointing person I am behind the mask?"

Ladybug wanted to yell and tell him that the boy behind the mask was surely as wonderful as the boy in the mask. Something inside of her suddenly seemed to wake up and she felt her usual, confident smile work its way on to her face. It seemed to take Chat Blanc as well, further adding to her growing confidence.

"To get my Kitty back, I'm prepared to take the risk."

Chat blinked, momentarily stunned by her change on attitude, before a cocky grin appeared on his face.

"Then bring it on, _my Lady_."

oO-0-Oo

 **This idea came to me when going through a list of bad luck omens. I really wanted to write something for this show, but I was hoping it would be a little happier if I'm honest. I also think I took a few liberties with how Chat was acting under the influence of the akuma, because I don't think he'd be able to remember much besides what had upset him, but oh well.**


	2. Chapter 2

For once Ladybug did not wish the purified butterfly well on its journey. She honestly didn't care what happened to it. Instead she looked down at the white ring in her hands. The only times she had seen the ring on Chat it was black, and his previous comment on her powers not being able to fix his Miraculous was echoing through her head. Of course, she couldn't have let him stay under Hawkmoth's control but, call her selfish, she didn't want to lose him as her partner.

She didn't even realise she was crying until a tear landed on the ring.

There was a grumbling behind her, probably Chat waking up in his civilian form, so she pointedly continued looking away from him. He'd had many opportunities to spy on her and discover her identity but he'd always kept his distance out of respect for her. She told herself that she was just repaying the favour, that it had nothing to do with how guilty she felt that she let her partner and one of her best friends get so badly hurt.

"Ladybug?"

She tensed. The voice sounded nothing like Chat's. Did he use a different voice depending on if he was transformed?

An explanation was quickly provided for her, courtesy of a telepathic message from Tikki. "Marinette! That's Plagg's voice, Chat's kwami. Please check on him."

She could understand Tikki's fear for her counterpart – he had been residing in the same object as an akuma. Ladybug wondered if he'd been affected like her partner.

Before she could turn to look for him, she felt a new weight land on her shoulder. She glanced at the small black cat-like kwami before he keeled forward, rolling down her body and landing in her opened hands with a little 'flump'. He sat up slowly, rubbing the back of his head and wincing slightly. Looking at him, Ladybug could understand Chat's own lack of balance now.

"Are you okay?"

Seemingly surprised, Plagg stopped rubbing the back of his head and blinked his wide green eyes at her. She wondered how many of Chat's mannerisms were his own, and what he'd picked up from his kwami.

"Hmm, that depends. I've spent the past three hours trying to stop an akuma from taking full possession of A-my partner, and all it seemed to result in was him targeting you directly since you were one of the few things he remembered other than his negative feelings. Oh, and I haven't had any cheese all day."

In spite of how grouchy the kwami sounded, Ladybug had a feeling he wasn't as bad as that. After all, he had stopped himself from revealing Chat's name. She suspected that his grouchiness stemmed more from the situation than anything else. Either that or because he hadn't had any cheese. She didn't know what kind of significance it held in his life.

For a long time she didn't know how to respond. If Plagg cared he didn't let on. Instead he reached over and picked up the ring. It slipped onto his arm like a bangle, such was the size difference between them, and turned it over once, examining it. He scowled slightly when his paw passed over the wet patch caused by her tears. However, upon looking up at her and apparently noticing something on her face, his scowl softened and he dried the ring silently without complaint. When he was done he removed it from his arm and gently placed it back in her hand.

"Did... Did I break it?"

Plagg looked up at her again, his unnaturally bright green eyes so similar to Chat's that she almost had to look away. "No, it's meant to be white when it's not in use."

Ladybug let out a breath she hadn't realised she'd been holding.

"That's... good." She finally settled on.

The small, bad luck kwami curled his tail around himself and didn't take his eyes off of her.

"None of this is your fault, Ladybug, and I'm sure Chat would be offended personally if he knew you thought like that."

Her eyes finally did drop away. She had no doubt that Chat wouldn't blame her. She didn't think he'd ever said a bad word against her. And that was precisely the problem. People possessed by akumas, no matter how petty the reason, were generally some of the most honest people around. They didn't hide why they were angry or upset; they used it as fuel for their power. And Chat Blanc hadn't held back when he had yelled at her for the way she had treated him.

She'd never thought much about it before; she just presumed it was part of their daily banter. When she had realised his feelings towards her were genuine she had stopped teasing him about it, but she had just assumed that he was fine with her comments about saving him. Evidentially he wasn't, and a knot formed in her stomach the more she thought about how bad a partner, how bad a _friend_ she was.

Ladybug desperately wanted to turn around. It had nothing to do with finding out Chat's identity and everything to do with giving her partner a tight hug and apologising. Oh, how she wanted to hold him. Nobody deserved to be infected by an akuma, least of all him. She wanted to see him smile again, even if it was just a flirty one. She wanted to see the way his green eyes lit up when she complimented him or played along with his silly games. She wanted to hear him call her 'my Lady' again, wanted to believe she still deserved such a title from him.

She wasn't aware that she was crying until a very anxious Plagg zipped into her field of vision, desperately patting her cheeks as if it would stop the tears from falling. As sad as she was, the genuine distress and confusion from not knowing what to do evident on his face caused her to laugh softly. Instantly Plagg looked relieved, his ears twitching slightly and his mouth twisting into a small smile.

"Ahh, that's much better, no? You wouldn't be able to enjoy cheese properly if you were crying. And if he thought I had made you cry then Chat wouldn't let me have _any_ cheese, and that's not very enjoyable either."

Ladybug really didn't know what Plagg's deal was with cheese, but the intensity of his passion for it made her smile. Maybe she could give Chat some cheesecake that he could later give the cat-like kwami some other time.

For several minutes, Plagg zipped about in front of her face, explaining how cheese was easily the best thing humans had created. Ladybug was so enthralled by his fast movements and joy that she didn't even notice Chat had woken up until she heard him groan behind her.

"L-Ladybug?"

She was startled into silence at the sound of his voice. Luckily for her, Plagg stopped his sermon and floated over to her shoulder. Out of the corner of her eye she could just make out him waving.

"How are you feeling?" Plagg questioned. If she was honest, Ladybug was half-expecting him to ask about the availability of cheese.

"Plagg?" Came the shocked reply, "What are you... No, what is _Ladybug_ doing here?" There was a hint of panic in his voice. She wrote it off as him being worried about his identity.

Somehow she managed to find the words to answer for herself. "There was an akuma attack. I had to stop them."

"An akuma?" She could picture his nose scrunching up in confusion, "I don't remember an attack."

She wondered if he'd just accepted her possibly knowing his identity. Did he think her avoiding his gaze meant that she was disappointed in who he thought she had found? "People possessed by akumas generally don't remember. It's probably got something to do with my magic that cleanses the butterflies."

There was a long silence. The implication in her words was pretty obvious she thought, and, despite how he generally acted, she knew that Chat was far from being an idiot. She just wished he would say something, anything, to break the horrible silence.

"Did I hurt you?" Even now he was still worrying about her.

She couldn't stop the small, bitter smile that followed his remark and she was glad she was turned so he couldn't see it. "I don't think your heart was in it, Kitty."

"Did I hurt anyone else?"

She commended his ability to still sound so calm. If she found out that she'd been possessed she was sure she would be a blubbering mess of tears and apologies. "No, Plagg said you came straight for me." She spotted Plagg nod his head in confirmation.

There was yet another long pause and Ladybug wondered if leaving Plagg to sort things out with Chat was an option. Just as she started thinking it might be, a hand touched her shoulder, its warmth spreading through her red suit so easily. It made a change from the feel of leather and clawed fingers.

"I'm sorry." Came Chat's voice, practically dripping with sincerity.

There was a beep. She was down to her last dot. Still, Chat's well-being was more of a concern to her than her identity. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and turned towards him.

Who was really in front of her? She didn't know. She didn't _care_. The person was Chat Noir, her partner, her friend, and she couldn't let him blame himself any longer.

"You stupid, stupid kitty."

She hadn't meant to say that, but she also hadn't meant to throw herself at him and start sobbing on his shoulder.

She could feel his body tense underneath her; feel the soft cotton of his shirt brushing against her cheek and slowly getting wet. He raised a hand and gingerly placed it on her back, rubbing soothing, but hesitant, circles between her shoulder blades. His body finally relaxed against her and his other hand laid gently on the back of her head, silently telling her it was okay.

"None of this is your fault, my Lady," He cooed quietly, "I'm sorry I made you worry."

It struck Ladybug how wrong it all was. She was meant to be comforting him, not the other way round. She moved her head up, eyes still closed so she couldn't see him, and his hand fell to land on the nape of her neck.

With her eyes closed her plan was a considerably harder one than she had anticipated, but her hands managed to find his face and pull it down towards her slightly. Using her thumb she brushed up his face lightly until she found his forehead. Without thinking twice, she reached up and pressed her lips to the area.

She heard his soft gasp as her lips connected and felt the hand on her back twitch when she drew away.

"M-my Lady," His voice sounded shaky and concern for him prickled her again "I appreciate your kindness but I think you need to leave before-"

"I _need_ to make sure you're okay, Chat." She cut him off forcefully.

The hands on her back and head left, leaving the areas cold in comparison to the rest of her body. There was a slight movement that caused just enough noise for her to hear and suddenly she couldn't quite reach his face again. Had she done something wrong beyond hurting him with her old comments? Was she trying too hard to save him?

"No you don't. Go."

Her fingers twitched and she bit down on her lower lip. His voice sounded oddly determined and she couldn't bear to hear it. She couldn't bear to be told to leave by him, even if he was just looking out for her it reminded her of the way she had already failed him.

"No." She hated how her voice cracked.

She heard him sigh and imagined him running a hand through his hair like she'd caught him doing when he couldn't think of a good comeback.

"You're always so stubborn." It didn't sound accusing, in fact it had a slight lilt that suggested he was resigned to this part of her personality and didn't hate it.

Before she could try to protest though, she felt warmth surround her hand. For a brief, fleeting moment she hoped that he'd changed his mind, that he wanted her to stay, but it was dashed as she felt him open her hand and take his ring.

"I'll see you later, my Lady." The name didn't sound right. The purr was absent from his voice.

She heard soft footsteps moving away from her, towards where the exit was. There was a soft pat on her cheek and she heard Plagg whisper, "He's just worried about you," before she felt the breeze change as he supposedly followed his partner.

After five minutes of no sound, Ladybug opened her eyes and surveyed the empty rooftop. Wait, no, her transformation had worn off so she was no longer Ladybug. She was just Marinette. Just Marinette who had failed yet again to save a friend.

As she collapsed to the ground and let the tears flow freely down her face again, she couldn't help but lament how bad her luck was for a ladybug.

oO-0-Oo

 **Do yo know what's funny? I had planned on writing a nice fluffly ending where they find out each other's identities and it all works out okay. I'm actually sorry I couldn't finish it, but I feel like this ending works better with the feel of the rest of the story.**

 **Thank you for all of the reviews and support for the first half of this. I've honestly not had such overwhelming support on a fic before and it made me so happy. I'm definitely going to keep trying to write for you wonderful people, but this story is done so it'll just have to wait.**


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